Tag Archives: monitoring

A baseline assessment can best be described as the basis by which to judge the success of any action taken to conserve, protect, enhance or restore water resources or habitats. Monitoring, when properly executed, continues to evaluate the health of the resource after any action is taken in order to track results in a meaningful way. This is the critical feedback loop to insure successful restoration and prudent adaptive resource management.

Trout Headwaters Inc performs baseline assessments to meet a variety of objectives, and to guide all restoration planning, design and installation. New technologies have made the assessment process quick and low cost – certainly the best investment toward a successful enhancement or restoration project.

It’s impossible to know where you are going without understanding where you stand right now. Unfortunately, in the relatively new industry of stream, river and wetland restoration, there are individuals and companies making recommendations, and even performing work, without properly evaluating the current condition of the resource.

Baseline assessment can best be described as the basis by which to judge the success of any action taken to conserve, protect, enhance or restore water resources. Monitoring is performed on a regular basis following implemented management changes and/or treatments to continue to measure the health of the resource.

THI performs baseline assessments to meet a variety of objectives, and to guide all restoration planning, design and installation. New technologies have made the assessment process relatively quick and low-cost – certainly the best investment toward a successful enhancement or restoration project.

Many expensive stream projects fail because they are not guided by science, experts say. At Trout Headwaters, Inc. we have a long tradition of promoting the use of baseline assessments in stream, river and wetland restoration. We even developed a patented system, RiverWorks Rapid Assessment System® (RRAS), to help standardize the assessment process. The first step to successful restoration is a full understanding of the current health and condition of the resource, and the factors influencing that condition. When restoration treatments are complete, monitoring and maintenance ensure and confirm long-term success.

A recent news release by University at Buffalo announces a new book co-edited by a Buffalo geography professor analyzing the state of the nation’s $1 billion stream restoration industry. The new American Geophysical Union monograph, “Stream Restoration in Dynamic Fluvial Systems: Scientific Approaches, Analyses, and Tools,” provides detailed explanations of best practices grounded in science.

“There needs to be research behind solutions,” said University at Buffalo geography professor Sean J. Bennett, who edited the book with Andrew Simon of Cardno ENTRIX and Janine M. Castro of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Because practice has outpaced research, projects on real waterways often turn out to be experiments themselves, and many fail. People undertake a project without fully understanding which restoration techniques work, or how a river will respond to the techniques employed, the article says.

Trout Headwatershas been providing water resource assessment, inventory and monitoring as part of successful restoration for many years, and continually look for ways to decrease costs and increase value for our clients. Since field data collection demands specialized equipment and skilled personnel, some project managers skip the assessment process altogether and more still fail to monitor the outcomes.

Anyone undertaking restoration should insist upon a good baseline assessment and monitoring program. Such an assessment can best be described as the basis by which to judge the success of any action taken to conserve, protect, enhance or restore water resources. Monitoring is performed on an ongoing basis to continue to evaluate the health of the resource after any action is taken in order to track results in a meaningful way.

Trout Headwatersperforms baseline assessments to meet a variety of client objectives, and to guide all restoration planning, design and installation. New technologies have made the assessment process efficient, repeatable and low-cost – certainly the best investment toward a successful stream, river or wetland restoration project. Learn more about assessment tools and processes by visiting our sister company http://www.riverworks.net

Wildlife management starts with good planning! Whether your goals are to increase wildlife populations or increase recreational use income on your property, thorough planning is key to meeting your management objectives.
Management is commonly comprised of planning, organization and monitoring. Planning is the foundation upon which the other two management functions rest. It is a way of doing business and, properly implemented, provides a system for solid decision-making and evaluation of effectiveness within in a framework of objectives.
So whether you want to improve forage for elk, provide food plots for waterfowl, plant hedgerows, restore riparian areas, enhance fisheries, or implement prescribed burns it all starts at the same place – with a good plan.